Santee given criminal jurisdiction on reservation
02/17/2006 08:45:12 AM
Posted: Friday, February 17, 2006
NIOBRARA, Neb. (AP) -- The Santee Sioux Indian Tribe has been granted jurisdiction over criminal matters by the Department of the Interior.
The tribe said the Department of Interior reinstated its jurisdiction at midnight Thursday.
Tribal Chairman Roger Trudell said the reinstatement marked a great day for the northeast Nebraska-based tribe.
"It serves as an affirmation of the Tribe's inherent sovereignty and jurisdiction over its reservation lands," Trudell said in a news release.
Jurisdiction of civil and criminal matters on the state's three Indian reservations was given to the state by the federal government in 1953.
In 1969, the U.S. government returned criminal jurisdiction to the Omaha Tribe after the state approved the action. It did the same for the Winnebago Reservation in 1986.
In the past, the Santee police department had jurisdiction only within the corporate limits of the village of Santee.
Law enforcement on the rest of the 200-square-mile Santee reservation was provided by the Knox County Sheriff's Department and the State Patrol.
The state Legislature returned jurisdiction of the Santee reservation to the federal government in 2001. Since then the tribe worked with state and federal officials to negotiate cooperative law enforcement agreements.
AP-CS-02-17-06 0929EST
The tribe said the Department of Interior reinstated its jurisdiction at midnight Thursday.
Tribal Chairman Roger Trudell said the reinstatement marked a great day for the northeast Nebraska-based tribe.
"It serves as an affirmation of the Tribe's inherent sovereignty and jurisdiction over its reservation lands," Trudell said in a news release.
Jurisdiction of civil and criminal matters on the state's three Indian reservations was given to the state by the federal government in 1953.
In 1969, the U.S. government returned criminal jurisdiction to the Omaha Tribe after the state approved the action. It did the same for the Winnebago Reservation in 1986.
In the past, the Santee police department had jurisdiction only within the corporate limits of the village of Santee.
Law enforcement on the rest of the 200-square-mile Santee reservation was provided by the Knox County Sheriff's Department and the State Patrol.
The state Legislature returned jurisdiction of the Santee reservation to the federal government in 2001. Since then the tribe worked with state and federal officials to negotiate cooperative law enforcement agreements.
AP-CS-02-17-06 0929EST
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